Sir Lancelot

Hi Steve, Is there any plan to release the Mac versions of the games on Steam? I picked up a couple of the newer releases through Steam, but was surprised to find out that, unlike the games I purchased through Battlefront.com, the Steam version doesn't support my Mac. Thanks! Sir Lancelot

Leaders who think they’re entitled to abuse their citizens — we’ve had those in the US too, you know? Good thing that checks and balances work, and stopped a would-be tinpot dictator. I don’t want to turn this into an argument about US politics, so I’ll leave it at that. Power corrupts, period. Without checks and balances, such leaders can arise anywhere.

You seem to have a caricature view of autocracy and theocracy. Despite all their flaws, these states still provide stability, social benefits, and public services (to varying degrees). To people living in these countries who may have never been to the West, but have received public services from their own (however flawed) governments, do you not see your view could be perceived as arrogant and condescending? How then do you plan on persuading these people that democracy is better?

I don’t believe in that rationale, because I know its flaws. But you can’t engage in diplomacy or plan effective response if you can’t empathize with the other side. Believing and understanding are fundamentally different concepts.

I’m afraid you haven’t figured out autocrat’s mentality. First, strongmen such as Putin and Xi have inflated ego and genuinely believe that only they can rejuvenate their countries — after all, they clawed their way to the top, surely it must mean that they are the strongest of the strong. Second, they see themselves as paternal figures — policies, however draconian or bloody, are implemented for the long term good of the state. Third, they see themselves in a constant struggle against an opportunistic West that is ready to pounce at the slightest sign of weakness — therefore, as they perceive their countries are in a constant struggle for survival, they must have the courage to do the unsavory dirty work so that the motherland remains safe. Putin’s fight for Ukraine and China’s for Taiwan are not really about expanding the empire but rather strengthening the empire by securing a sphere of influence so that the heartland is in a strategically safer position. Putin and Xi (to a lesser extent) are mentally living in the past — they still firmly believe in great power politics of the 19th century.

Of course China hasn’t been neutral in this war, but its interests are also not aligned with Russia’s (in truth, Putin’s). What China wants is status quo ante bellum - China would’ve preferred Putin had never started the war, but now that it’s started, China wants to see the war ended as soon as possible, but not at the expense of Russia becoming destabilized or Putin being ousted. For this reason, we’ve so far seen China acting as Russia’s life line, but not so much so that China would send military aid to Russia. However, if the US unnecessarily stokes tension in Taiwan at this moment, China could perceive this as a strangle move by the US and could be provoked into sending material war support to Russia. The West has been dragging its feet with delivering heavy weapons and struggling with sending enough ammunition when Ukraine has been fighting a mostly self-reliant Russian army. Is it wise to further provoke the world’s second largest economy into becoming Russia’s arms factory, not to mention the global economic fallout that would ensue?

That’ll be the surest way to convince Xi that his head is next on the chopping block if Putin’s fall. It will dramatically escalate this war to no one’s benefit.

There is an ancient Chinese proverb — “Cold the teeth shalt be when the lips demise.” It means that when an ally is all that stands between you and a powerful foe, its demise will bring the flames of war to your lands and spell your own doom. This proverb is known to every Chinese because it was the reason that Mao famously gave for sending troops to fight in Korea. Xi and his cadre grew up with this proverb reverberating at their ears, and I’m certain that this is the chief reason on their mind for choosing to back Putin at this dire moment.

I’m curious why a well-trained spetsnaz team would corner themselves like that. Seems like they might still be alive if they retreated from the AO

It's heartbreaking... after 6 weeks and it's all about to end so tragically.

itv reported that Ukrainian forces expect Mariupol to fall within 24hrs. The defenders are running out of ammunition. https://www.itv.com/news/2022-04-11/russia-likely-to-ramp-up-attacks-on-east-ukraine-in-coming-days-zelenskyy-warns

I don't want to get into a big discussion about Japanese Imperialism, but treatment of Taiwanese natives during the Japanese occupation of Taiwan wasn't all that "decent". The Japanese occupiers ruled the island with an iron-fist, treated its people as second-class subjects, and used the men as canon fodder. The truth is, they treated the Taiwanese no better than slaves and tried to wipe out their culture. I highly recommend a Taiwanese film called Seediq Bale, which recounts a native tribe's struggle against Japanese occupation.

I'm actually Chinese, and my observation of Chinese netizens' reaction is actually very much the opposite. The great majority of ordinary Chinese citizens seem to buy into Russia's propaganda (b/c that's what they are fed on Chinese media) and many are very pro-Putin. They lay the blame at Ukraine and the West's doorstep, and feel that Russia is helping China by checking the West's expansionism and disrupting their containment of China's own rise. The strong nationalist sentiment that Xi Jinping has been cultivating through propaganda and autocratic leadership is very worrying...

BTR-82A, AK-74M, men with beard, these probably are Chechens.

Last time Russia invaded Georgia during China's 2008 Olympics and it was viewed by Beijing as a grave insult. I doubt Putin needs any reminder to not repeat that.